Low prices, healthy meals help build a noodle empire

BOULDER — Noodles are centuries old. Nearly every culture on earth serves some type of noodle dish. But serving noodle bowls in an upscale fast-food environment is an innovative idea that “has legs,´ said Aaron Kennedy, founder and president of Noodles and Co.

The 6-year-old, Boulder-based company runs 23 stores in Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin, and had sales last year of more than $13 million. Kennedy expects to generate $29 million this year. “We’ve outperformed the business plan every year,” Kennedy said. “People call us, wanting to start a franchise or invest. They tell us, ?Wow, what a great idea!'”

One of those people is John Grubb, who invested in Noodles 18 months ago. “I like the value of the proposition,” Grubb said. “They are sticking to their plan.” Growth seems to be the privately held company’s main agenda. Kennedy expects the number of stores wearing the Noodles and Co. name to swell to 40 by year’s end and to 70 by the end of 2002.

What do customers see in a restaurant that primarily sells a simple food like noodles? “It’s healthful food,´ said board member and investor Bob Serafin of Boulder. “The product is very appealing at this time. It’s somewhere between quick food and sit-down, full-service dining.”

The dining area is different, too. “It’s not a fast-food dining room,´ said Kelly Pascal Gould, a company representative. “It’s beautifully done and hip and high-style.”

Price is also a factor. “For six bucks, you can go in there and get a decent meal,” Grubb said. “It’s one of those few places where kids and parents can agree.” This is just the image that Kennedy wants for the noodle shop. “The overriding principle in the company is to do a few things very well,” he said.

The streamlined menu of 10 noodle bowls, soups, salads, flat breads and desserts seems simple; however, the noodle bowls represent a variety of tastes. “The concept is universally unique,” Pascal Gould said. “It’s the global noodle shop. Our menu is Mediterranean, to Italian to American to Asian.” But they’re all noodle-based, unlike many faltering fast-food chain that dabble in different types of food to boost their sales.

“I think other restaurants veer into other areas of food because their concept is waning,” Pascal Gould said. “We haven’t experienced that. The more you deviate, the harder it is to manage and do well. It’s easy to have a great idea; it’s really hard to execute it and make it happen.”

Part of making the idea click was practice, said Serafin. “It took time to get the formula right in our first store in Cherry Creek,” he said. “You keep learning in any business.” Serafin also credits Kennedy’s leadership. “He has tried to create a company culture that leans toward low turnover,” he said. “The corporate culture pays a lot of attention to the customers. They have a saying that goes something like, ?Every customer, every bowl, every time.’ They also pay attention to the staff and what its needs are.”

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